EU watchdogs warn quantum computing could threaten blockchain security

European Union financial supervisors have warned that progress in quantum computing could eventually weaken the cryptography that protects blockchains and other digital systems. In a joint risk update, the European Banking Authority, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority, and the European Securities and Markets Authority said quantum advances may pose a future threat to transactions, communications, and databases. The warning follows recent research from Google Quantum AI suggesting that breaking cryptocurrency cryptography may require fewer physical qubits than earlier estimates, although no computer capable of doing so exists today. The article notes that Bitcoin developers have proposed a plan to phase out current signatures over time, while the Ethereum Foundation has said it wants the network to be resistant to quantum attacks by 2029.